It’s that splendid time of year again; when the leaves start to turn, when the temperatures recede back to comfortable normalcy, and when soccer season really gets going. In the past few weeks, numerous leagues have begun play, ranging all the way from the top heights of the English Premier League and other big European leagues, down to the local youth soccer leagues all over the world. In between, you’ve probably had a chance to hear about how your local high school and college soccer teams are faring in the new season as well. And with so many beautiful games upon us, now is the best time to reserve custom soccer scarves to represent your own club!

The timing couldn’t be better. By ordering your scarves now, you’ll be certain to receive them right as the season hits a climax, providing an awesome parting gift to your players and fans. Additionally, as winter weather begins to settle in, people will really be scrambling for something to keep them warm during those frigid playoff game nights or crisp early Saturday mornings.

Scarves have long been a tradition in the sport of soccer, well entrenched over a period extending 100 years, as fans have brought their team’s colors to the matches in order to stay warm and to show their support. Famed scarf walls adorn the stands of most professional matches these days as supporters hold their scarves up over their heads, showering their beloved team with belief and good spirit. Now you too can look to the sidelines and stands to see the famous scarves of the game, in your team’s very own colors!

Custom scarves have become increasingly popular over the years and also serve as a vital fundraiser for clubs of all shapes and sizes. Of course major clubs manufacture thousands of them for their many supporters, but at the lower levels of the game scarves can serve an important financial benefit to any team. High schools can use the sale of 100 scarves or so to help fund new jerseys, while youth clubs can benefit by covering tournament costs and other expenses.

But of course there’s no better time to get started with a custom soccer scarf order than during the season, when interest in the sport and your team is at its max! People are interested in how the team is doing, and they want to show their support. Don’t wait until after the season is over to order scarves for your players; get them now, while the games are coming up and while they will serve their vital purpose. This is an excellent opportunity for your team to take part in this wonderful tradition in soccer. So take advantage of this perfect time to get your team’s very own custom soccer scarf and watch your team soar to new heights!

Raising Money with a Custom Scarf Fundraiser is EASY! Use the 7 simple tips below & see how easy success can be.

1. Do a Pre-Sale! There are a number of reasons why running a pre-sale will contribute greatly to a successful Custom Scarf Fundraiser.

Initial Cost: If your team is concerned with the initial cost of starting a Custom Scarf Fundraiser, pre-selling scarves could be the solution to eliminating that concern. The sales made during this time can be used to cover the cost of production, and get things moving until your custom scarves arrive.

Generate Interest: Before your scarves arrive you can generate interest with your pre-sale. Ruffneck Scarves will produce a digital mock up design of your custom scarves that you can use in an email blast to your mailing list, put up on social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram), or on your organization’s website. You will sell some scarves and also create a buzz before the scarves even arrive!

Lighten Your Load: The more scarves you are able to sell during your pre-sale, the less you will have to sell later. Sites like bigcartel.com could be a big help with getting you started by creating a FREE online shop that can be linked to on your existing webpage.

Pre-Sale Discount: A great tactic to pre-sell scarves during your fundraiser is to offer a pre-sale discount. Many organizations offer deals to the early bird purchasers, even a small discount encourages people to purchase early. Discounting your scarves from $20 to $18 during pre-sale could be just enough motivation to get those early orders.

Idea of Demand: Another benefit of doing a pre-sale is getting a vague idea of your demand. It is not uncommon for organizations to sell out of scarves during a pre-sale. Luckily if that happens you can quickly get in touch with your Ruffneck Scarves Custom Scarf Specialist and look into increasing your order to keep up with demand.

Visit the Fundraising Page at RuffneckScarves.com to download a Fundraising Pre-Sale Template to help you get started pre-selling your custom scarves.

2. Spread the Word. It is impossible to run a successful fundraiser if no one even knows you’re having one, so spread the word!

Social media: An obvious place to start would be sharing your Custom Scarf Fundraiser via social media. Post pictures of your team, club, or organization sporting their flashy new scarves and be sure to include a link to where they can get their own!

Newspaper/Newsletter: An often overlooked place to spread word of your fundraiser is through a newspaper, or newsletter. Particularly for high school or college groups, getting in touch with the newspaper staff to run a feature about your swanky new scarves is an easy and free way to let the entire school know about your fundraiser.

Email List: Many organizations keep record of some sort of email list which may include alumni, students, teachers, parents, or recent visitors to your school or organization. These list are a great market to reach out to because they are already tied to or interested in your organization. Develop a concise message about your fundraiser, include a photo of the scarf, and a link of where to purchase they’ll be jumping to get their hands on one!

Make an Announcement: Before your match, at an assembly, on your school’s radio channel or news broadcast make an announcement. Let people know you’ve got scarves and they need them.

Word of Mouth: Tell your friends. Tell your family. Tell your peers. Tell your coworkers. Tell the person you’re sharing the elevator with. One of the fastest ways to spread news is word of mouth, and besides that making a personal touch point is a great way to bring people in to help your cause. Let them know how great the scarves you’re selling are, and how the money raised will benefit your organization.

3. Make Them Available. So people keep hearing about these awesome scarves you’re selling but they have no clue where to get them? That is a problem! In order to successfully sell your scarves they need to be available when and where supporters of your organization are going to be.

At Games: If you’re a sports organization, it is imperative to have your scarves available at your games. Setting up a simple merchandise table will allow you to easily service your game day fans, who will be thrilled to have a new way to show their support.

Outside Common Areas or Cafeteria: High traffic areas like the cafeteria are another great place to sell scarves, and reach people who may not make it out to games. Always ask permission from administration prior to setting up in these locations.

Pick-Up Location: Having a pick-up location can be a great way to ease distribution and increase sales. If you ran a pre-sale, announcing a pick-up location with specific dates and times will make fulfilling those early orders a snap, and can also serve as a place for new customers to make purchases. An adviser or coach’s office could serve as a great pick-up location.

4. Choose an Inclusive Design. There are literally unlimited ways to customize your scarves with Ruffneck. You can choose your own colors, logos, text, and more to create the perfect unique scarf for your organization. But with so many options, sometimes it is easy to get carried away and lose sight of the end goal which is to raise funds for your team. Your scarf should be designed with this goal in mind, and the best way to reach that goal is to appeal to as many potential customers as possible. One of the best ways to appeal to a wider range of people is to choose a more general inclusive design.

Example: The Lost Lake High School Lancer’s Soccer team is designing scarves for their Custom Scarf Fundraiser. They scarves have their school colors, mascot, and name so there is plenty of team spirit in the design, but by excluding the word soccer their scarves now appeal to a wider range of supporters. With this more general design not only can they sell their scarves to the soccer team & supporters, but to Lancer football fans, LLHS alumni, staff members, general students, and more!

5. Get the Community Involved! Everyone likes to feel included and when you let your community feel involved in important decisions, such as helping to design or decide on your custom scarf design, they will be more likely to make purchases down the road. Holding a Scarf design contest is super simple. You can use THIS scarf design template to let members of your community get involved and submit potential scarf designs. Please also know Ruffneck Scarves will create digital mock up scarf designs for FREE. You can choose a few of your favorite designs and call upon your community to take a vote for their favorite. The community involvement will increase interest & you will also know which scarf is appealing to the most people. Sounds like a win-win, and sites like surveymonkey.com and kwiksurvey.com make voting a snap.

6. Incentivize Selling. Fundraisers are for the whole team’s benefit, whether it’s to raise money for new uniforms, travel expenses, equipment, or a killer end of season banquet the whole team shares in the reward, so the whole team should participate. One way to make fundraising fun is adding a bit of competition or incentive to sell. Perhaps the top three sellers don’t have to run sprints at Friday’s practice. Or anyone who sells 10+ scarves earns their own scarf for free. There are dozens of different ways inspire your fundraising sales team, so get creative!

7. Show Them Off!!! One of the best ways to sell your custom scarves is also the easiest, just wear it! You’ll be shocked by how many people enquire about your new accessory and want to know where they can get one. It seems so obvious but had to be mentioned, because it is super effective. Don’t be surprised if someone wants to buy the scarf right off your neck! When people see how functional, fashionable, and spirited your custom scarves are they will jump at the chance to pick one up.